A Closer Look at Foxborough's Special Town Meeting Warrant

Voters at the Dec. 11 special town meeting will review, discuss and decide on 13 warrant articles ranging from police and fire contracts to a proposed turf field at the high school.

The lone "big ticket" expected to be voted on at the December meeting is Article 6, the proposed turf field project presented by Turf's Up and sponsored by the School Committee. Voters will be asked to support two phases of the project and appropriate $125,000 from the town's overlay surplus account to fund Phase I of the project – construction of turf field, lights and fencing as well as construction of baseball and softball fields behind the high school.

Voters will be asked to vote no action on Article 5, the Town Hall renovation/replacement project to give town officials more time to analyze funding for the project and investigate alternative options.

Other potential articles like proposed zoning changes by the Kraft Group along Route 1 and the company's request for more liquor licenses to expand Patriot Place will be left off the warrant entirely after talks between the town and Kraft Group dissolved in October.

As for the other 11 warrant articles:

• Article 1 Fire Contract: This article is sponsored by the Board of Selectmen to see if the town will vote to raise and appropriate, transfer from available funds or borrow pursuant to any applicable statute such sums of money deemed necessary to fund the cost of items for Fiscal Year 2013 in a collective bargaining contract between the town of Foxborough (represented by the Board of Selectmen) and Foxborough Permanent Firefighters Association, Local 2252, in accordance with Chapter 150E of the General Laws of the Commonwealth, or take any other action related thereto.
• Article 2 Police Contract: This article is sponsored by the Board of Selectmen to see if the town will vote to raise and appropriate, transfer from available funds or borrow pursuant to any applicable statute such sums of money deemed necessary to fund the cost items for Fiscal Year 2013 in a collective bargaining contract between the town of Foxborough (represented by the Board of Selectmen) and Foxborough Police Department, Massachusetts Coalition of Police, Local 379, AFL-CIO in accordance with Chapter 150E of the General Laws of the Commonwealth, or take any other action related thereto.
• Article 3 Highway Contract: This article is sponsored by the Board of Selectmen to see if the town will vote to raise and appropriate, transfer from available funds or borrow pursuant to any applicable statute such sums of money deemed necessary to fund the cost items for Fiscal Year 2013 in a collective bargaining contract between the town of Foxborough (represented by the Board of Selectmen) and the Foxborough Highway and Water Employees Union, AFSCME, in accordance with Chapter 150E of the General Laws of the Commonwealth, or take any other action related thereto.
• Article 4 Unpaid Bill from Prior Years: This article is sponsored by the Board of Water and Sewer Commissioners to see if the town will vote to fund an unpaid water bill from the town of Mansfield dated March, 17, 2011 that was never originally received; and to raise and appropriate $12,235.21 from available funds to meet said appropriation; or take any other action related thereto.
• Article 5 Town Hall Plans: Town officials are expected to recommend a vote of no action on this article sponsored by the Board of Selectmen. The article was to see if the town will vote to raise and appropriate or transfer from available funds an amount to pay the cost of hiring engineers and architects, and/or consultants for the purpose of preparing design plans and specifications, to include contract/bid documents and estimates of probable site work, demolition and construction relating thereto of the building known as Town Hall, located at 40 South St., Foxborough; or take any other action related thereto.
• Article 6 Artificial Turf Field: This article is sponsored by the School Committee to see if the town of Foxborough will raise and appropriate, transfer from available funds, or borrow pursuant to any applicable statute, under M.G.L. Ch. 44 Sec. 7(25) or any other enabling authority, the sum of One Hundred Thousand and Twenty-Five Dollars ($125,000) for the construction of an artificial turf field with lighting and related amenities and relocation of baseball fields and athletic practice fields and their amenities on property located at, and adjacent to, the Foxborough High School located at 120 South St., Foxborough, including the hiring of engineers, architects and/or consultants for the purpose of preparing design plans and specifications, to include contract documents and estimates of probable site work, demolition, and construction costs relating thereto, as well as the original equipping and/or furnishing of said fields; it being understood that private grant funds, cash donations and donations of related services with a combined total value of over $400,000 will also be committed to the turf field project by the Turf's Up organization; or take any other action related thereto.
• Article 7 Municipal Employee Organ Donors: This article is sponsored by the Board of Selectmen to see if the town will vote to accept the provisions of Massachusetts General Laws, chapter 149, section 33E, which reads as follows:
  "An employee of the commonwealth or of a county, or of a city or town that accepts this section, may take a leave of absence of not more than 30 days in a calendar year to serve as an organ donor, without loss of or reduction in pay, without loss of leave to which he is otherwise entitled and without loss of credit for time or service; or take any other action relative thereto."
• Article 8 Water and Sewer Employees: This article is sponsored by the Board of Selectmen to see if the town will vote to authorize the Board of Selectmen to petition the General Court of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts to adopt the following legislation; and further to authorize the Legislature to reasonably vary the form and substance of the requested the legislation subject to the approval of the Board of Selectmen who are hereby authorized to approve amendments within the scope of the general public objectives of this petition. In addition, the Board of Selectmen are authorized to pursue the general public objectives of this article through one or more separate petitions of a more limited or specific scope, offered at such time as the Board of Selectmen deem appropriate, to accomplish incrementally the general public objectives of this petition:
  An Act Relative to the Town of Foxborough.
  
  Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority of the same as follows:
  
  SECTION I. Amend Section I of Chapter 5 of the Acts of 2004, an Act providing for a selectman - Town Manager Form of Government in the Town of Foxborough (Town Manager Act) by deleting Section I in its entirety and replacing it with the following:
  
  "The town of Foxborough shall be governed by the provisions of this act. To the extent that this act modifies or repeals existing general laws and special acts, including but not limited to Chapter 46 of the Acts of 1986, or the by-laws of the town of Foxborough, this act shall govern."
  
  Amend Section 4(B)(4) of the Town Manager Act by inserting the following sentence after the first sentence: "Manage and direct the daily reporting and supervision of the water and sewer department employees."
  
  Amend Section 8 of the Town Manager Act by deleting the phrase "water and sewer employees" after the phrase "health agent" in the second sentence of Section 8 of the Town Manager Act.
  
  SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon its passage.
  
  and further, to authorize the Board of Selectmen to take such actions and to enter into such additional instruments and agreements as they may deem appropriate and necessary to effectuate the purposes of this act; or to take any other action relative thereto.
  
• Article 9 M.G.L., Chapter 40, s 8J: This article is sponsored by the Board of Selectmen to see if the town will vote to accept in its entirety Massachusetts General Law, Chapter 40, section 8J: Disability Commission, powers and duties; members; terms; creating a disability commission for the town of Foxborough; or take any other action relative thereto.
• Article 10 Tier I Assessment: This article is sponsored by the Board of Selectmen to see if the town will vote to raise and appropriate, or transfer from available funds, an amount to pay the cost of hiring engineers, and/or consultants to conduct a Tier I Assessment on a parcel owned by the town of Foxborough located at 21 Market St., Map 079, Parcel 000222; or take any other action related thereto.
• Article 11 Amend Zoning By-Laws: This article is sponsored by the Board of Selectmen for the Planning Board to see if the town will vote to amend the zoning by-laws by striking the words "except as provided for in Section 3.4 of these by-laws" from the end of section 10.2.2.3; or take any action in relation thereto.
• Article 12 Amend Zoning By-Laws: This article is sponsored by the Board of Selectmen for the Planning Board to see if the town will vote to amend the zoning by-laws by making the following change:
  To strike the existing section 9.3 Flood Plain Overlay District (FPOD) and substitute the following:
  
  9.3 Flood Plain Overlay District (FPOD)
  
  9.3.1 Overlay District. The floodplain district is herein established as an overlay district. The district includes all special flood hazard areas within the town of Foxborough designated as Zone A and AE on the Norfolk County Flood Insurance Rate Map (FIRM) issued by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) for the administration of the National Flood Insurance program. The map panels of the Norfolk County FIRM that are wholly or partially within the town of Foxborough are panel numbers 25021C0332E, 25021C0333E, 25021C0334E, 25021C0341E, 25021C0342E, 25021C0342E, 25021C0343E, 25021C0344E, 25021C0351E, 25021C0353E, 25021C0354E, 25021C0358E, 25021C0361E, 25021C0362E, 25021C0365E and 25021C0366E dated July 17, 2012. The exact boundaries of the district may be defined by the 100-year base flood elevations shown on the firm and further defined by the Norfolk County Flood Insurance Study (FIS) report dated July 17, 2012. The FIRM and FIS report are incorporated herinby reference and are on file with the Town Clerk, Planning Board and Building Commissioner.
  
  9.3.2 Requirements.
  
  1. All building and structures erected in areas prone to flooding, as designated on the Flood Insurance Rate Maps (FIRM) or as further enumerated, shall be constructed and elevated as required by the provisions of the Basic Code.
  
  2. Within Zone A, of FPOD, where the base flood elevations is not provided on the FIRM, the applicant shall produce any existing, reasonable, base flood elevation data and it shall be used to meet the requirements of A above. Base flood elevation data is required for subdivision proposals or other developments greater than fifty (50) lots or five (5) acres, whichever is lesser, within unnumbered A Zones.
  
  3. In the floodway, designated on the Flood Insurance Rate Map, the following provisions shall apply;
  
  a. Prohibit encroachments, including fill, new construction, substantial improvements, and other development unless certification by a registered professional engineer or architect is provided by a registered professional engineer or architect is provided by the applicant demonstrating that encroachments shall not result in any increase in flood levels during the occurrence of the one hundred (100) year flood.
  
  b. If Section 9.3.2.3.a, above is satisfied, all new construction and substantial improvements shall comply with all provisions of Sections 9.3.2.1 and 9.3.2.2, above.
  
  4. In Zone AE, of the FPOD, along watercourses that have a regulatory floodway designation, encroachments are prohibited in the regulatory floodway which would result in an increase in flood levels within the community during the occurrence of the base flooding discharge.
  
  5. In Zones A and AE, of the FPOD, along watercourses that have not had a regulatory designation, the best available Federal, State and local or other floodway data shall be used to prohibit encroachments in the floodways which would result in any increase in flood levels within the community during the occurrence of the base flood discharge.
  
  6. All development in the district, including structural and non-structural activities, whether permitted by right or by special permit must be in compliance with Chapter 131, Section 40 of the Massachusetts General Laws and with the following: Sections of the Massachusetts State Building Code (780 CMR) which addresses the floodplain areas; Wetlands Protection Regulations, Department of Environmental Protection (DEP; currently 310 CMR 10.00); Inland Wetlands Restriction, DEP (currently 310 CMR 13.00); and the minimum requirements for the Subsurface Disposal of Sanitary Sewage, DEP (currently 310 CMR 15, Title 5) and Foxborough Conservation Commission regulations.
  
  7. In a riverine situation, the Building Commissioner shall notify the following of any alteration or relocation of a watercourse: adjacent communities, NFIP State Coordinator, Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation, 251 Causeway St., Suite 600-700, Boston, MA 02114-2104 and the NFIP Program Specialist, Federal Emergency Management Agency, Region I, 99 High St., 6th Floor, Boston, MA 02110.
  
  8. Subdivision proposals shall be designed to assure that; such proposals minimize flood damage, all public utilities and facilities are located and constructed to minimize or eliminate flood damage, and adequate drainage is provided to reduce exposure to flood hazards.
  
  Or take any other action related thereto.
• Article 13 Municipal Housing Trust: This article is sponsored by the Board of Selectmen to see if the town will vote to accept the provisions of Massachusetts General Laws c.44 s.55C establishing a Municipal Affordable Housing Trust; or take any other action related thereto.

Town Meeting will begin at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Dec. 11 inside the auditorium of Foxborough High School.